Bush touts school agenda

Crawford, Texas

In a back-to-school message, President Bush says that while many public schools aren't making the grade, he should get high marks from voters for the No Child Left Behind Act.

"We are leaving behind the broken system that shuffled children from grade to grade, even when they were not learning the basics," Bush said Saturday in his weekly radio address. "We're requiring regular testing, providing extra help for children falling behind. We're giving information and options to parents. We are holding schools accountable for the progress of every child."

He acknowledged that "some schools have catching up to do," but said the federal government was making extra money available to schools that need the most help. To help disadvantaged students, Bush said the government had boosted aid to $12.3 billion, an increase of 41 percent since he took office.

Bush said one federal grant went to Asheville City Schools in North Carolina, the home district of Ira B. Jones Elementary School.

"Two years ago, Jones did not meet standards under the new law. So district leaders used more than $200,000 in federal aid to help Jones hire a reading coach, train additional teachers, increase parent involvement, and start an extended-day program for struggling students," Bush said.

J.B. Buxton, a former education adviser to Democratic North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley, said that while the state welcomed the federal money, state and local officials "would be amazed to hear the president taking credit for their progress."

Buxton said the progress stemmed from a 10-year effort to improve accountability, teacher quality and early childhood classroom preparation.

Last week, an interest group, Communities for Quality Education, funded in part by the nation's largest teachers union, launched $2.5 million worth of new commercials assailing Bush's education reform law.

The 30-second ads claim the 2001 law is shortchanging the nation's schools by wasting money on bureaucracy, leaving classrooms overcrowded with fewer teachers and out-of-date books and materials.

Even though Kerry voted for No Child Left Behind, the commercials promote him.